Charlotte Street Recommends
Charlotte Street Partners
A strategic communications company from a different place.
Welcome to the latest edition of?Charlotte Street Recommends, where members of our team share their favourite books, films, podcasts, trips, and other cultural gems that have captivated, inspired, or challenged us over the past year. We hope you find something that intrigues or resonates with you and that you have time to relax over the next couple of weeks. We’d love to hear from our subscribers about your own cultural highlights this year too, so please do get in touch with your picks of 2024.
Client Manager
Email subscription: The Week‘s Best Photos
The Week is a fantastic publication, shining a light on stories which might otherwise go unnoticed by UK audiences. The same is true of its weekly round-up of photographs, which showcases big news stories, cultural events and the lives of ordinary people around the world in a unique light.
A picture really is worth a thousand words, and you can have some of the best contemporary photography landing in your inbox every Friday. A great way to end a busy week.
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Associate Partner
Excursion: Edinburgh Zoo
I’m taking a risk by recommending something I’ve not done yet but intend to over the festive break, that is to visit Edinburgh Zoo and meet Haggis, the baby pigmy hippo born just a few weeks ago.
I’ve been enthralled by Instagram videos of Haggis since her birth and want to visit before she gets too big. While people have varying views on zoos, Edinburgh Zoo is first and foremost a wildlife conservation charity and baby Haggis is helping raise awareness of the plight of her endangered species.
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Senior Partner
Book: Anamnesis by Iona Lee
Normally I would recommend an album but there’s been such an abundance of brilliant new music released this year that I’m struggling to choose a top five, never mind a single favourite. Music was the gateway for my pick, though, in that I became aware of Iona Lee courtesy of her appearance at James Yorkston’s Tae Sup wi’ a Fifer tour, when she shared the bill in Peebles with Yorkston, Kris Drever and Rozi Plain. Whether in person or on the page, Lee’s poetry makes you think, laugh, wonder and return, again and again. Her debut collection of poems, Anamnesis, is a perfect stocking filler for those who love poetry and those who don’t yet.
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Partner
Gallery: Collective, Calton Hill
If you’re after a different perspective on Charlotte Street Partners’ home city of Edinburgh, the Collective Gallery offers this in more ways than one.
Situated in the heritage observatory, perched atop Calton Hill with 360-degree views of the capital, Collective develops and presents exhibitions, events, workshops and discussions from pioneering international and local artists.
You can even book to stay in the adjoining Observatory House. And if, like me, you have a small child with endless energy, the landscaped grounds offer a novel play space in the very heart of the city.
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Managing Partner
Podcast: Assume Nothing
A Northern-Irish true crime podcast that explores real-life cases, unravelling complex investigations and the societal impacts of crime. It challenges listeners to question assumptions of guilt, justice, and public narratives, offering a fresh perspective on the criminal justice system.
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Executive Support and Office Manager
Play: Life of Pi ?
The staging of Yann Martel’s Man Booker Prize-winning novel Life of Pi is a visual spectacle that will take your breath away.?Its talented cast and masterful puppetry bring to life a zooful of characters, telling the journey and plight of the young Pi on the Pacific Ocean. ?It left audiences at the Festival Theatre this summer on the edge of their seats and my eyes brimming with tears.?Look out for more tour dates next year – a standing ovation is inevitable.
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Client Manager
Novel: Cleopatra and Frankenstein by Coco Mellors
On a rainy Sunday afternoon, Cleopatra and Frankenstein is the perfect pick. Cleo, a young British artist in New York, marries Frank, a successful older man, in an impulsive decision that alters both their lives. Through humorous and poignant chapters, the novel explores relationships, mental health, and self-discovery, highlighting the complexities of love, identity, and growth.
Senior Partner
Excursion: Bassins des Lumières, Bordeaux
My highlight of 2024 was Bordeaux, but not due to the various wine tastings. I finally had the opportunity to visit Bassins des Lumières. Located in a World War II submarine base, a dramatic backdrop in and of itself,?this giant, fully immersive art installation sits on the edge of the historical centre of Bordeaux. Don’t be fooled, as I was, by the importers touring similar exhibitions across the UK – they simply can’t (and don’t) compete.
Each year a different artist is featured, and the art works are expanded and displayed as a magical sound and light exhibition. I danced, I cried and even took a comfy nap to the sound of birdsong in the Monet dome. At only €15 per ticket, it’s well worth it even when you consider the airfare to get there.
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Associate
Play: ?Top Girls by the National Theatre
After reading Caryl Churchill’s Top Girls?on a dreary February afternoon while studying for my final English module at university, I watched Churchill’s words come vividly to life online, in the National Theatre’s compelling production of the play.
Against the backdrop of Britain electing its first female prime minister, the play examines Thatcher’s right-wing politics and the evolving feminism of that era.
The opening scene is fascinating with Marlene, newly-promoted managing director, hosting an extraordinary dinner with women from history and myth, among them Bruegel’s folklore Dull Gret, a Victorian explorer, a legendary ninth-century Pope, and Chaucer’s obedient wife from The Clerk’s Tale.
The trans-historical nature of their struggles, revealed through the shared threads of their similar experiences, is strikingly embodied in the production’s radically dissimilar costumes. Despite their diversity their stories unite them, sparking a powerful dialogue on the shifting yet enduring nature of patriarchy and capitalism across the ages.
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Client Manager
Podcast:?Not Another One
I’m a sucker for a cross-party political pod and there is no shortage of them, as this one’s title acknowledges. However, the lineup of Not Another One is a cut above the rest. As chair, Steve Richards is as thoughtful as ever, and brings out the best out of panellists Miranda Greene, Iain Martin and Tim Montgomerie.
All four are avid watchers of politics, but are less constrained in their analysis than certain other podcasters, who are often bound by professional or personal obligations to a particular party. The result is free-roaming and expansive conversation, where all sides are open to critique without compromise.
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FRANK O’DONNELL
Senior Partner
Podcast: Mixed Signals
Although this is billed as a podcast about media, it’s more about power, money and culture. While the hosts and guests are American the themes resonate here, often looking at the big strategic shifts in society. The chemistry between hosts Ben Smith and Nayeema Raza works beautifully; listening is like eavesdropping in on a conversation between the two smartest people you know.
Founder
Mountain: Ben Ledi, near Callander
Ben Ledi is the first big hill I climbed, one winter in the late 1980s. I grew up a few miles down the road, so it feels a bit like going home when I’m there, which is increasingly often. Though it falls 116 feet short of Munro status (3,000 feet), Ledi is an especially rewarding mountain, with breathtaking views in every direction. My advice: go in the summer and watch the sunset from the top. Remember to take a torch for the way down, though.
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Associate
Book: Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus
Having taught herself chemistry from a 1950s textbook, Bonnie Garmus was inspired to write Lessons in Chemistry by her own experience of gender-based workplace discrimination. The story follows a strong protagonist, Elizabeth Zott, who is a chemist forced out of her research job by sexism during the 1960s. In an unexpected career shift, Zott finds a pathway to channel both scientific thinking and feminist ideas into American living rooms, as a cooking show host. I was totally absorbed by this compelling, funny and very real portrayal, and have found myself thinking about it often throughout this year.
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Client Manager
Restaurant: Pomelo
I’m posting a restaurant recommendation because I’m typically on the lookout for new menus to try myself. Pomelo has become a kind of go-to for me, either for a casual evening out or brunch on a lazy Sunday afternoon. Situated in Edinburgh’s Sciennes neighbourhood, it embodies the term ‘hidden gem’, even as I try to avoid that expression.
The small restaurant is a joy for vegetarians and meat-eaters alike, offering a unique take on Asian fusion in a simple and modern bistro-like setting. Make sure to try their hand-ripped noodles with spicy garlic chili oil – full of flavour and just enough spice to keep you coming back for more. It operates on somewhat limited hours during the week and just two rounds of seating each night, so best to book a bit in advance. It’s always worth the wait.
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Associate Partner
Film: The Holdovers
I knew nothing about this film as I walked into the cinema in January. Walking out, I knew I’d just seen my film of the year and one that is set to become a Christmas classic in the Watson household.
This bittersweet story is witty and emotional in equal amounts, with incredible performances from Paul Giamatti – who was nominated for an Academy Award for his efforts – and Da’Vine Joy Randolph, who went one better and won an Oscar, for best supporting actress.
It tells the tale of an unpopular staff member ordered to stay onsite at the boys’ boarding school where he teaches, to supervise the children/teens who can’t go home for the holidays. Set in the 1970s, it deals with grief, the threat of Vietnam war drafting for young men, and the building of friendships across generations.